Wow! Now I Want To Be A Principal Too!

The picture above was taken at a recent Terry Fox run and walk activity organized by several schools in the Nelson area. In a friendly competition, schools raised money for cancer research with the understanding that the Principal from the school who raised the most funds would “walk the plank” into the chilly waters of Kootenay Lake. In this picture – the principals of all schools involved earned a tremendous cheer from their students, staff, parents and volunteers as they jumped into the water together – after having done so individually.

I was in the crowd cheering (and feeling a bit guilty that I wasn’t also one of the ones jumping) when I overheard a young lad in conversation with his peer exclaim, “Wow! Now I want to be a Principal too!”

Of course, this got me to thinking. We don’t really celebrate our Principals enough. They are unsung heroes who are pivotal to ensuring that teams are working together on behalf of our learners. Teachers first, Principals strive to ensure exceptional learning environments exist for our children and youth. They provide leadership based on years of experience as instructional experts, and exceptional backgrounds in educational research. They are CEO’s, managing budgets and facilities that are in most cases larger than many small businesses. Principals teach parents, and they offer counsel and advice to parents and teachers who are working together – or who should be working together. Principals motivate, encourage, bring vision to life, and foster a commitment to be the best we can, for the betterment of our future. Most Principals have a teaching responsibility, and feel guilty because they aren’t able to commit fully to that responsibility. They translate and implement District goals. And, Principals deal with endless mounds of paperwork generated by District and Provincial accountability requirements. To top it off, they generate spirit and energy – by having their heads shaved, having things thrown at them, being dumped in tanks of water, getting arrested for charity events – and jumping into cold lakes.

I couldn’t be more proud of our Principals in School District 8. I really believe they epitomize the best of who a Principal should be. Working with this exceptional group of leaders is among the most memorable of my experiences as an educational leader. Not because they willingly jump into a cold lake – but because without exception they rise to the challenges before them. They do this, not because they seek fame and fortune – but because they truly care about the children and youth for whom they are accountable – and for their staffs and the communities within which they work. Our Principals envision a preferred future for our learners, and for our District.

Although it probably isn’t politically appropriate for me to mention the present work action being taken by our teachers – I do have to say something. I need to tell our Principals that they amaze me every day. I see how they are being torn, caught between the phenomenal relationships they have established and the understanding that those relationships have had to change. Every day I see examples – either in person or via an email or telephone message, of how our Principals have continued to walk the high road in an exhausting environment – far more exhausting than normal – in a politically charged battle that is taking place in this province.

So, when I heard that young lad exclaim, “Wow! Now I want to be a Principal too” – I knew I just had to say thank you – to our Principals in School District 8 – and to those who serve in this capacity all over – you are heroes. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Many thanks, as well, to Lorri Fehr for taking this awesome picture – and our Principals Carol-Ann Leidloff, Kimberly Jones and Vic Manson who took the plunge!

Discovering the Truth

Not long ago, a friend of mine said that he was more interested in discovering the truth than he is in changing minds.

In my opinion, it is the quest for truth that is the essence of an inquiry-based learning experience and central to the personalization of learning. Students who are deeply engaged in meaningful exploration of topics and issues, who are fully immersed in discovery, develop a passion for learning and for contributing their knowledge in a variety of ways.

When I reflect on my own learning experiences as a young student, it seems that people spent a lot of time “telling” me things and asking me to memorize the information they gave me. What I lacked in earlier years, were opportunities to examine issues and events in a manner that encouraged me to ask questions and discover “truth.” Frankly, I want better than this for our students – and I know that we expect better than this in our School District.

As I prepared for this Blog, I came across the following quotes from Paul Johnson, who authored “Enemies of Society.”

“…truth is much more than a means to expose the malevolent. It is the great creative force of civilization. For truth is knowledge; and a civilized man is one who, in Hobbes’ words, has a “perseverance of delight in the continual and indefatigable generation of knowledge.” Hobbes also writes: “Joy, arising from imagination of a man’s own power and ability, is that exaltation of mind called glorying.” And so it is; for the pursuit of truth is our civilization’s glory, and the joy we obtain from it is the nearest we shall approach to happiness, at least on this side of the grave. If we are steadfast in this aim, we need not fear the enemies of society.”

“Civilization… is the rational pursuit of truth within a framework of order. The discovery of truth, of course, is part of this ordering process, the way by which man located himself in the universe. This is a very long, complicated and cumulative process. Man needs to orientate himself in time, by discovering and perfecting chronology; in space, by acquiring geographical and astronomical knowledge; in nature, by discovering its laws and using them to master his environment. He is also engaged in a continuous effort of moral and social orientation, reflected in his attempts to improve his designs for civil government, for legal and ethical codes, and his image of what a just society should be. There is, likewise, a process of moral ordering, in which man seeks to discover his worth in relation to other men, and to the potentialities of his surroundings. Human beings need to know where they stand in all these matters, for such knowledge is an essential element in their security, and… their happiness…”

I wonder how our community will change as we focus on being truth seekers – rather than mind changers?

Are We Seeing The Forest – Or the Trees?

The picture I am using is one I took in my yard. I think the scene represents a wonderful metaphor for the “Instructional Core”

As we know, one of the drivers for effective systemic reform is a tenacious focus on instruction as the fulcrum of change. Richard Elmore writes of the “Instructional Core” and says “you can’t change performance without changing the instructional core. The relationship of the teacher and the student in the presence of content must be at the centre of efforts to improve performance.”

At the center of this important relationship, is the task of learning in which a student is involved. A teacher must be able to observe a learner involved in the task of learning, ascertain the student’s interpretation of the task and the actual learning that is occurring, and adapt practice when learning objectives are not being met.

In this image, we see a student, being instructed by his teacher (in this case, a parent) in the presence of its content (So? What is our problem or challenge here, and how will we solve it?). Another student was on the ground taking the picture – me – recognizing that I was part of those bears’ content – and I had a little problem of my own!

With a focus on the instructional core, we are able to personalize the learning experience for our students, shaping and adapting practice according to each student’s context. We can identify a problem of practice, and work collegially to find solutions to perplexing challenges we face with students each day. It is essential that we work collaboratively to take the most powerful ideas and put them into a coherent form that is distinctive, and that redefines the leading edge of improvement strategies.

In a coherent system, all resources, strategies and systems are aligned with a focus on the instructional core – with a razor sharp focus on each student.

This enables us to see both the trees – and the forest.

It’s A System Thing

Last week I had the opportunity to participate in an exceptional learning opportunity. Several superintendents from throughout the province gathered together and we spent the day engaged in purposeful, focused conversation with each other. The day was facilitated by renowned researchers and contributors to our thinking about educational leadership – Michael Fullan, Valerie Hannon and Tony Mackay.

For me, the day served as an opportunity to spend time in deep reflection about the direction of School District 8, and to determine if I can sense alignment among the hopes and expectations of the communities we serve, our school district’s attendance to those hopes and expectations, and the provincial directions in terms of public education.

Part of our conversation was focused on what Michael Fullan refers to as “the right drivers” for whole system reform. To engage in this conversation does not in any way infer that any system is broken. Rather, it is meant to say that we need to be serious about evolving our work as public educators in order to meet the ever-changing needs of our students now and into the future.

Dr. Fullan identified four “right” drivers for whole system change: Capacity Building, Collaborative Work, A Focus on Instruction, and Systemic Solutions. He says that these drivers “are effective because the work directly on changing the culture of school systems (values, norms, skills practices, relationships). We could spend hours reflecting on each of these Drivers. The important thing, though, is to think about our own District and determine if we are engaging the right Drivers to position ourselves to meet the ever-changing needs of our students.

At a District Leadership Meeting in August of this year I summarized the present work of our District:
* Continuing to focus on establishing a coherent alignment of our resources focussed on the
instructional core;
* Continued focus on the instructional core as the fulcrum of change;
* Commitment to the personalization of the learning environment for each of our students;
* Establishment of a collaborative culture through the development of families of schools and a
focus on capacity building throughout the District;
* Myth Busting – putting to rest the stories that are holding us back;
* Culture shifting – focussing on values, norms, skills, practices and relationships);
* Ensuring the Public is actively engaged in determining our direction.

I believe this summary of our work is evidence that we are engaging the right drivers for continuous evolution of our district – just as our students continuously evolve in an ever-changing world.

The bottom line, though, as stated by Mourshed et al, 2010, “it’s a system thing, not a single thing…In the absence of a system mindset individual pieces, each of which contains half-truths, are pitted against each other as vested interests bash each other with proverbial baseball bats. No one wins; the system loses every time.”

Ultimately if we are going to serve in the interest of our learners – we have to do so together with a razor-sharp focus on engaging learners in the task of learning –

It is a system thing!

Welcome to the New Year

I am pleased to welcome approximately 5000 students to our schools this year!

It is an exciting time to be a student!  There is so much to learn – and so many ways to learn! In School District 8 we hope to inspire each of our learners and help them explore our world in a variety of different ways, through personal journeys that meet unique learning needs and interests.

Our school district is striving to understand our learners well – and then position our resources to meet each student’s needs.  With the support of parents, caregivers, our community partners, and over 1200 part-time and full-time staff members with exceptional backgrounds, more and more opportunities are being made available for our students.

This is a time of transformation in School District 8.  We are working to position our school system to be a more flexible, responsive organization.  We hope to establish deep connections with our communities, and create a forward-looking culture that will support our learners now and into the future as we assist them over the threshold to a future we haven’t yet imagined.

School District 8 is proud to be a Public Education System.  We welcome all students.  Our locally elected Board of Education provides insight and wisdom, and governs the District.  The Ministry of Education provides leadership and support that helps to guide decisions we make on behalf of our District.

I hope that this year each student experiences his or her best learning year to date!  Once again, welcome!

“They All Have An Amazing Story”

In my role, I have the opportunity and privilege of attending many graduation ceremonies.  At the one I attended most recently, I was conversing with one of our Trustees about the fact that she knew almost every student who was graduating.  She said, “Yes, Jeff.  I know most of them.  And you know – they each have the most amazing story.”

These few words remind all of us that education is, indeed, a personal endeavor.  As much as learners work in groups and “classes” each learns according to the context he or she brings to the act of learning.  When we talk about the personalization of learning,  we aren’t changing the learner.  Instead, we are adapting the environment for learning to meet the unique and personal needs of each learner.

At the same graduation I observed the faculty who were beaming with pride.  They knew each student, and truly cared for each of them.  The faculty knew the challenges and the victories each student had experienced.  The faculty knew the families of the students.  They truly care for and cherished each of these remarkable young people.  They withheld judgment and invited each student to thrive as an individual – with unique strengths, skills, interests, opportunities and challenges.  Absent of judgment, each student was welcomed as a unique and wonderful human being.

Said the teacher speaker, “This group of graduates is truly unique in how individual each student is.”  I wondered at that point of this was because the students had intentional opportunities to grow into their own unique selves?

I have said repeatedly that I believe the times we are in are perhaps the most challenging in the history of humankind for children and youth to survive and thrive.  An intentional focus on getting to know each individual is critical if we are going to help them become.

Congratulations to all of our graduates.  I hope your journey through the threshold into the unknown future – the one you will experience and create – is inspiring, hopeful, filled with joy and laughter and the love and care of those who know YOU.

Thank you to our staff, parents, caregivers and communities, for contributing to the lived experience of these wonderful young people.

Blah Blah Blog…Changing the Educationese Lull-aby

A Celebration of Student Learning – In Spite of the “Educationese” Lullaby We Sing!

Do you ever find that the rhetoric we use relentlessly in education to try to tell our story or explain a preferred learning environment for our students start to blend together in a cacophony of sound – with a recognizable and comfortable rhythm – until the meaning is lost?  Do we observe, talk with and about students to learn from their day-to-day experiences, or are we being lulled into a comfortable state of knowing without knowing – really?  Have you attended recent presentations and conferences only to have the speaker speak the familiar lullaby that leads you toward an altered state?  I have – and it concerns me deeply!  Thus the title of this blah blah blog.

We hear a lot about Personalized Learning, especially in the context of the 21^st Century skills students need in a highly technological and advanced knowledge-based society.  (A familiar tune, no doubt?)  What we don’t do enough is celebrate the wonder of every day in the lives of so many of our students.  Nor do we adequately draw upon our observations of our students to inform and teach the profession about who these young people are, and how they seek to learn. 

I believe we don’t adequately celebrate the success of our teachers and staff who have broken barriers, negotiated their way through formidable structures that impede progress, and who quietly stand in the shadow of each student’s success.

Recently I have had the pleasure of attending a number of Grad Transition Presentations, and Scholarship Presentations.  These events have provided me with the opportunity to see amazing young people – who have achieved beyond anything they could have imagined for themselves.  Each and every student I have gotten to know has teachers and caregivers standing in the background cheering silently – and sometimes not so silently – for them.

Interestingly, not one of the students I have observed and with whom I have spoken has completed their public school education in the industrial and lock-step manner that apparently dominates our schools.  This tells me that teachers and caregivers are working with our students to personalize the learning experience.   Some examples?

• A burgeoning artist and incredibly accomplished young lady who had worked since the age of seven with local artists to develop a passion and talent that has formed the foundation for her future choices.  She is completing Secondary School a year early and will take a gap year before pursuing her post-secondary goals – she completed some of her course work online, and some of her work at school.  Isn’t this a “blended learning environment?”
• A young man, shuffled from foster home to foster home, spoke of finding a family and learning to make decisions that would make his life better – he worked in an alternate setting until he felt ready to take his classes at the secondary school;
• A provincial champion welding student spoke of completing secondary school while working toward his apprenticeship requirements;
• A student who wants to be a sound engineer but recognizes the enormous cost of that career choice, chose to pursue another passion of cosmetology and will complete school with both a Dogwood, and a profession that would help earn money to support post secondary education goals toward becoming a sound engineer;
• A visually impaired student, independently negotiating the stage at graduation to receive her Dogwood.

Are we there yet?  No.  Why?  Because the images of personalization I have shared aren’t the lived experience of each and every student in our schools.  However, it is  these images, and the conversations we have with these students, and our observations of their generation, that will inform us regarding how to get there – even though we don’t really know where “there” is. 

We have to stop singing the lull-aby – and we need to start giving meaning back, by placing action with our words, our hopes, and our aspirations for today’s students and the students of the future.  As educators, we need to put the melody back into our song.  We need to celebrate our students, their parents and caregivers, our staff and our communities.

Congratulations to our schools who have been working so valiantly on behalf of our incredible youth.  Thank you!

To our students – please keep inviting us into your song!

Through the Eyes of a Child

I wonder what school was like for each child in our school district today?

On Wednesday, during a visit with some very keen grade seven students at one of our schools in Creston, I enjoyed a detailed tour of a model depicting Ancient Mesopotamia.  The model was built with well considered detail, and obviously a great deal of thought and research.  Two students were my tour guides, and they explained to me how they had learned about this culture, and how they decided what needed to be included in the model.  We spoke quite a bit about how human beings survived in those times, and how the culture was similar or different from our own.  Then one of the students surprised me when he pointed to a character in the model and said, “See, that’s me.”  When I asked the other tour guide which character in the model was him, he said with some glee, “I am the king!”

My immediate thought after that interaction was, “I wonder how many students in our school district are this immersed in their learing experiences today?”

Our work is complex. Placed into our care are capable human beings from diverse backgrounds.  We seek to understand their gifts, their talents, their unique genius – and help them to uncover the questions of our time, as they evolve into contributing citizens who participate in the world according to choices they are equipped to make.  We work with the highly capable, the spirited, the curious, and those who challenge our intellect, our processes and our structures.  We receive into our care the broken hearted, the mistreated and abused, the marginalized and those who struggle with fundamental basic skills.

So, what will our legacy be?  When historians look back at public education in the 21^st century what story will they see?  I hope they will be able to see a story of dedicated and professional educators.   I hope they will be able to see that we were able to adapt to changing needs of our students over time – because we can.  I hope they will be able to see that our practices were informed by exemplary professional research.

I still wonder though – what would a child tell us about what school was like today?